September 30: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Every September 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. On this day, we acknowledge the impacts of residential schools on First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people.

What is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation?

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is a federal statutory holiday that honours Indigenous children who attended residential schools. The impact of residential schools still affects survivors, families, and communities today. 

Also on September 30 is Orange Shirt Day. On this day, people wear orange to recognize the experience of people who went to residential schools and the impacts on their families. Orange Shirt Day also advocates that Every Child Matters. It emphasizes the importance of every child, including residential school survivors and children who didn’t come home from residential schools. 

What Were Residential Schools?

Residential schools were church-run, Canadian government funded schools for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children. These schools took children from their families and forced the children to learn English, become Christian, and assimilate into White Canadian society. As a result, residential schools were a tool of cultural genocide and attempted to kill the culture of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people. The government funded 139 residential schools, and over 150,000 children attended them. It’s estimated that 6000 children died in these schools and many more were physically, sexually, and psychologically abused. The last residential schools closed in 1996 and 1997. 

At some residential schools, children weren’t allowed to speak their language and were separated by gender, so they couldn’t see their siblings. Many were given new, Christian names to ‘civilize’ them and, at some schools, they couldn’t go home to see their families for the holidays. This prevented children from seeing their family, practicing their language, and learning their culture. 

What Can You Do? 

On September 30, you can learn more about residential schools and the Indigenous peoples of Canada. Look for stories online, or find a book by an Indigenous author. Attend an event. Educate yourself on this topic, acknowledge the lasting effects of residential schools, and learn whose traditional land you live on. For Literacy Now Burnaby, we are grateful to live, work, and play on the traditional unceded territories of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Sníchim speaking peoples.